The NFL’s 2026 preseason begins Thursday night with the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, before rolling into three weeks of exhibition contests that give coaches their first live look at rosters and fans a long-awaited return to football.
Hall of Fame Game: Panthers vs. Cardinals, Aug. 6
The preseason officially opens with the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on Thursday, August 6, at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. This year’s matchup features the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals, kicking off at 8 p.m. Eastern on NBC, with streaming available via Peacock and other services.
The game anchors Hall of Fame weekend, coming two days before a new class of inductees is enshrined in Canton. As NBC’s schedule rundown notes, the Hall of Fame Game has become the league’s traditional preseason curtain-raiser, often giving fans their first look at rookie quarterbacks and depth-chart battles, even if most starters play sparingly.
DAZN, which holds NFL Game Pass rights in multiple markets, lists the fixture as “Panthers vs Cardinals (Canton, Ohio)” at 8 p.m. ET, with simultaneous coverage for UK and West Coast audiences.
Preseason structure: Three weeks, all 32 teams
After the Hall of Fame Game, the rest of the preseason is compressed into a three-week slate:
- Week 1: Thursday, August 13 – Saturday, August 15
- Week 2: Thursday, August 20 – Sunday, August 23
- Week 3: Thursday, August 27 – Saturday, August 29
That three-week format, introduced when the regular season expanded to 17 games, has become standard: one showcase game in Canton, then three full weekends of exhibition matchups, with all 32 clubs appearing each week.
Week 1: First look at rosters (Aug. 13–15)
Week 1 of the preseason begins Thursday, August 13, and runs through Saturday, August 15, with all 32 teams in action. NBC’s insider schedule and Yahoo Sports’ week-by-week listing outline the following key matchups and times (all Eastern):
Thursday, August 13
- Detroit Lions vs. Cincinnati Bengals – 7 p.m. (local)
- Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers – 7 p.m., NFL Network and local
- Indianapolis Colts vs. New England Patriots – 7:30 p.m., local
- Arizona Cardinals vs. Las Vegas Raiders – 8 p.m., local/ESPN app
- Los Angeles Chargers vs. Houston Texans – 8 p.m., local
- Tennessee Titans vs. San Francisco 49ers – 9 p.m., NFL Network
Friday, August 14
- Denver Broncos vs. Atlanta Falcons – 7 p.m., local
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New York Jets – 7 p.m., NFL Network
- Miami Dolphins vs. Washington Commanders – 7 p.m., local
Saturday, August 15
- Carolina Panthers vs. Buffalo Bills – 1 p.m., local
- Cleveland Browns vs. Chicago Bears – 1 p.m., NFL Network
- Minnesota Vikings vs. New York Giants – 1 p.m., local
- Los Angeles Rams vs. Kansas City Chiefs – 4 p.m., local
- Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New Orleans Saints – 4 p.m., local
- Philadelphia Eagles vs. Baltimore Ravens – 7 p.m., local/NFL Network
- Dallas Cowboys vs. Seattle Seahawks – 8 p.m., NFL Network
For fans, Week 1 is typically when rookies and new free-agent signings see their first live snaps, and position battles begin to come into focus.
Week 2: Extended run for key backups (Aug. 20–23)
Preseason Week 2 runs from Thursday, August 20 through Sunday, August 23. NBC’s full schedule and Yahoo’s grid list these notable games:
Thursday, August 20
- Las Vegas Raiders vs. Houston Texans – 8 p.m., ESPN
- San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Chargers – 10 p.m., NFL Network
Friday, August 21
- New York Jets vs. Pittsburgh Steelers – 7 p.m., NFL Network/local
- Carolina Panthers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars – 7:30 p.m., local
- Green Bay Packers vs. Denver Broncos – 9 p.m., local
Saturday, August 22
- Washington Commanders vs. Detroit Lions – 12 p.m., local
- Buffalo Bills vs. Cleveland Browns – 1 p.m., local/NFL+
- Atlanta Falcons vs. Indianapolis Colts – 1 p.m., local
- Baltimore Ravens vs. Minnesota Vikings – 1 p.m., local
- New Orleans Saints vs. Los Angeles Rams – 4 p.m., local
- New York Giants vs. Miami Dolphins – 4 p.m., local
- Chicago Bears vs. Cincinnati Bengals – 7 p.m., NFL Network
- Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots – 7 p.m., local
- Kansas City Chiefs vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 7:30 p.m., local
- Dallas Cowboys vs. Arizona Cardinals – 10 p.m., NFL Network
Sunday, August 23
- Seattle Seahawks vs. Tennessee Titans – 8 p.m., NFL Network
Historically, Week 2 is when many coaches give starters their longest preseason run, while evaluating second-unit players in extended series.
Week 3: Final auditions before cuts (Aug. 27–29)
The third and final week of preseason play runs Thursday, August 27 through Saturday, August 29, with teams making last evaluations before final roster cuts. NBC’s breakdown and NFL.com’s schedule show:
Thursday, August 27
- Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Buffalo Bills – 7 p.m., local
- New England Patriots vs. Cleveland Browns – 8 p.m., Prime Video
- San Francisco 49ers vs. Las Vegas Raiders – 8 p.m., local
- Los Angeles Rams vs. Los Angeles Chargers – 10 p.m., NFL Network
Friday, August 28
- Washington Commanders vs. Baltimore Ravens – 6 p.m., local
- Atlanta Falcons vs. Miami Dolphins – 7 p.m., local
- Houston Texans vs. Carolina Panthers – 7 p.m., local
- New York Giants vs. New York Jets – 7:30 p.m., local
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars – 7:30 p.m., local
- New Orleans Saints vs. Dallas Cowboys – 8 p.m., local
- Seattle Seahawks vs. Kansas City Chiefs – 8 p.m., NFL Network
- Cincinnati Bengals vs. Philadelphia Eagles – 8 p.m., local
- Minnesota Vikings vs. Denver Broncos – 9 p.m., local
Saturday, August 29
- Detroit Lions vs. Indianapolis Colts – 1 p.m., local
- Chicago Bears vs. Tennessee Titans – 6 p.m., local/NFL Network
By Week 3, most established starters see limited action or sit entirely, while fringe roster players and special teams hopefuls get one last chance to impress before cutdown day.
How to watch and stream
National and local broadcasters share preseason coverage:
- Hall of Fame Game: NBC and Peacock (Panthers vs. Cardinals, Aug. 6, 8 p.m. ET)
- NFL Network: Carries a slate of games across all three weeks, often simulcasting local feeds for national audiences.
- ESPN/Prime Video: Selected games, including Texans–Raiders (Aug. 20, ESPN) and Patriots–Browns (Aug. 27, Prime Video).
- Local affiliates: Most preseason games air on regional broadcast partners listed by teams and the league.
- Streaming: DAZN Game Pass, NFL+, and services like fubo offer live streams of many national and local broadcasts.
With the regular season set to kick off September 9, when the Seattle Seahawks host the New England Patriots in a Super Bowl LX rematch, the three-week preseason will serve as the league’s live proving ground for rookies, new schemes and roster hopefuls before the games begin to count.